


Talons and Bright Feathers

by Inksinger



Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Blood Elves, Flirting, Fluff, Gen, Tae'thelan is a big preening bird
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-02
Updated: 2014-12-02
Packaged: 2018-02-27 21:16:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2707076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inksinger/pseuds/Inksinger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tae'thelan is an even worse flirt than Halduron, and a bit less gentlemanly about it, to boot. Currently, the High Examiner has his sights set on Liadrin, who is far from enthused.</p><p>Written as a giveaway prize. This thing is five hundred years overdue and still only halfway done; I won't rest until it's finished!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Talons and Bright Feathers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wanda von dunayev (wandavon)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wandavon/gifts).



It was never difficult, Liadrin reflected, to tell when High Examiner Tae’thelan Bloodwatcher had come to the Sunfury Spire for another round of bartering, bickering, and (all too frequently, in the matron’s mind) blaspheming in an attempt to badger the grand magister for funds, apprentices, supplies, or anything else Tae’thelan thought his Reliquary was in dire need of. The arrogant man always made it a point to ride up to the very doors of the Spire – on his platinum-feathered, half-mad, highly temperamental _female_ hawkstrider, a creature far better suited to riding into battle than picking her way through the crowded streets of Silvermoon City – and loudly proclaim that his mount was weary (she seldom was) and he was already very late and had no time to waste waiting for someone to see to his bird (ignoring that he usually arrived unannounced and unwelcome).

Even a blind, deaf child fast sleep in his cradle could have sensed the chaos Tae’thelan’s bird caused today, as four of the Spire’s resident animal handlers tried to wrestle the bloody thing to the hawkstrider enclosure without causing her to lose too many feathers… or being gored by her wickedly sharp talons and beak. Even the regent lord’s personal hawkstriders – a foursome of the most unflinching birds Liadrin had ever encountered in all her life – gave Tae’thelan’s shrieking beast of a mount a wide berth and a few irritable chortles as the handlers finally managed to shove it into the open pen with the other hawkstriders. Many of the others were less composed, trotting nervously about, flapping their massive wings, shaking their heads and snapping their beaks as the newcomer turned her attention from trying to concuss one of the handlers with her wings to charging brazenly about the pen.

Liadrin watched from the shade of a nearby breezeway as one of the braver handlers went into the pen after the bloodthirsty creature and managed to chase her away from her attempt to intimidate one of the other hawkstriders by throwing a bloody bit of meat past her beak and into an empty corner of the enclosure. Predictably, the smell of fresh meat was enough to draw the crazy bird away from the rest of the terror… as well as the handler, who managed to get back on the other side of the fence and lock the gate before Tae’thelan’s brute finished her snack.

Robbed of any elves to maim or other animals to antagonize – for the rest of the birds had by now moved well off, and Lor’themar’s hawkstriders had placed themselves between the terror and the snowy beast and were now making a show of fluffing themselves up and hissing at the newcomer – Tae’thelan’s hawkstrider finally seemed to settle down a bit, though she still snapped her beak on occasion and looked about with wide, mad eyes.

Liadrin shook her head and finally moved away from the hawkstrider enclosure. Even for a battle mount, that pale-feathered menace was almost more trouble than she was worth, but all Tae’thelan ever paid attention to were her shining platinum, blue, and silver feathers (as near to a rare white as one could get without emptying their coffers, and likely bought for even cheaper still due to her madness) and gleaming, solid black beak. Like the arrogant apprentices of the Magisterium, the high examiner probably thought the creature’s extremely violent temperament was charming; it certainly wouldn’t be the first time he put his own flashiness above the safety of the other poor people he rode that feathered demon near.

At least Tae’thelan’s arrival hadn’t shattered the usual relative peace of the Spire; many of the off-duty guardsmen had spent most of the morning tossing each other about in the secluded Pavilion of Blades, stirring up so much racket that Liadrin had finally given up on trying to sleep in and stomped outside minutes later to ‘help them improve’ – as she had explained when Halduron had asked her why she was trying to murder the lot of them with a wooden practice sword.

"I thought I’d give them an early-morning demonstration," she’d told the ranger general as the group had limped away with as much speed as their wounded dignity would allow.

"In what?" Halduron had laughed, "The effects of rousing an irate Blood Knight before she’s ready to wake up?"

"No," Liadrin had replied, idly inspecting the edge of her (by then heavily chipped and battered) wooden sword. "It was a demonstration in respecting the sanctity of a quiet morning, and the consequences of shattering that quiet."

Halduron had laughed at that, loud and heartily enough that some of the retreating guards had visibly flinched and started limping faster. Evidently their egos were rather more wounded than Liadrin had expected… or else hearing Halduron laugh in the Pavilion of Blades was seldom a good thing. Liadrin wasn’t able to ask which it was, because it was at that point that Tae’thelan had started causing his typical commotion before the Spire’s doors, causing the unfortunate handlers to scurry out before the idiot decided to ride his hawkstrider through the Spire itself rather than around the servants’ gate to the left of the doors.

Halduron had vanished into the Pavilion by the time Liadrin had stopped rolling her eyes and turned back to talk to him; rather than give the mischievous elf an opportunity to pay her back for trashing the Spire’s guardsmen, the matron had beat a cautious retreat of her own, leaving the Pavilion of Blades and circling through the grounds to the hawkstrider enclosure.

Her morbid curiosity now sated, Liadrin moved back through the grounds, intending to return to her rooms and at least attempt to clear some of her bloody paperwork away while Tae’thelan was still preoccupied with making an ass of himself to Rommath and Lor’themar – the latter of whom would undoubtedly take it upon himself to sit in on the impending squabble, if only to prevent the other two elves from murdering each other or destroying the meeting hall trying. It would probably be the first of several debates; Tae’thelan was as stubborn as he was boorish, and wouldn’t put his latest demands to rest until he was certain that they would be met satisfactorily.

Liadrin only prayed Lor’themar and Rommath survived his visit with their sanity intact; the matron herself, meanwhile, planned to make the most of what peace remained before the great blond streak of aggravation was set lose upon the rest of the Spire’s inhabitants. First she would put a dent in that mountain of paperwork on her desk, and then perhaps she would take little Salandria out to the Bazaar for a nice, quiet day of shopping and not being hounded by a stubborn, flashy, blasphemous once-was-a-mage who smelled eternally of strong brandy, dust, and the suffering of dwarves.

Like as not something – or someone – would come along to ruin all her wonderful plans, but after sitting down and going through only two request forms, Liadrin’s mind had gone far too numb with boredom for the matron to really care. After seven reports and another request form, she was actively fidgeting, bouncing one foot on its ball as she read; by the tenth report and first inventory sheet, Liadrin caught herself hoping Tae’thelan would come knocking just to give her something more entertaining to do than pour over endless sheets of parchment.

The thought startled her, yanking her out of her doldrums with the sheer horror of the realization that she was bored enough to _welcome_ Bloodwatcher’s company. Clearly it was time to stop and get out of the Spire before she was driven to madness; with a grunt, the elf shoved herself away from her desk and headed through the rest of her quarters in search of Salandria.

She found the little elfling up to her usual games with the ever-accident-prone Whiskers. Girl and kitten perched at the edge of Salandria’s bed, apparently preparing to launch themselves onto the small mountain of pillows Salandria had stacked on the floor – and Liadrin was quick to notice that some of those pillows did _not_ belong in their apartments.

Salandria bailed off the mattress, squealing happily as she landed on the pillows a second behind Whiskers… and then scrambling across the mound to try to catch the kitten as he went flying from the force of Salandria’s landing. Liadrin jumped forward as well, sailing over the pillows and Salandria and just managing to catch Whiskers before he could land rump-first and the floor and break yet another of his little bones.

"You saved Whiskers!" Salandria cheered, eagerly taking the black-and-white kitten back from Liadrin and hugging him before putting him carefully back on the floor. The kitten squeaked happily and rolled around Salandria’s feet, batting at the hem of her skirt as the elfling looked up at Liadrin and asked, "Have you come to play crater explorers with us, Lady Liadrin?"

Ah, so _that_ was their game. Liadrin wasn’t entirely surprised; ever since she had overheard an adventurer in the Royal Exchange discussing a series of rather… unfortunate mishaps that had befallen him in the Un’goro Crater, Salandria had been obsessed with the savage locale and the creatures found within it. Just yesterday, Liadrin had caught her trying to sneak a lizard into their rooms, claiming she was pretending it was a dinosaur she’d captured and was now trying to tame. Not five minutes after Liadrin had convinced her to put the poor creature back outside, Salandria had gotten into trouble with one of the hawkstrider handlers for setting the lizard loose under the talons of one of the more fidgety hawkstriders, causing the poor bird to startle right when the handler had been trying to medicate a gash on its left leg (hawkstriders, when kept in large, non-familial terrors, could sometimes grow temperamental with each other, and the injured bird had been on the receiving end of a tantrum thrown by one of its fellows.)

Needless to say, the handler was lucky his arm was still attached, and although he would likely sport a wicked scar down the appendage for the rest of his days, he had ultimately not gone through with any of his threats to drown Salandria or use her for hawkstrider chow. Whether or not this had anything to do with his knowledge that Salandria was the ward of the matron of the Blood Knights remained a mystery, but Liadrin didn’t really need to know the whys and wherefores as long as there were no murders being committed on the Spire’s grounds.

"No, I’m not here to play explorers," Liadrin answered, smiling as Whiskers tripped over his own paws, landing in a disgruntled heap on his rump and mewling indignantly up at Salandria as though the tumble had been her fault. "I came to see if you’d like to come on a shopping trip with me – just the two of us, out at the Bazaar. I think the two of us need a girls’ day out, don’t you?"

"Yes!" Salandria said, grinning and bouncing happily in place. Whiskers squeaked and scrambled out of the way as the little elfling ran to brush her hair – _yet again,_ Liadrin noted with a sigh. How had the girl managed to turn her hair into such a mess not three hours after it had been tamed into a sleek, presentable ponytail? And like as not it would be a wreck by the time they returned to the Spire, too…

Liadrin shook her head, resigned to the inevitable as she reached down and scooped Whiskers up into her arms – and hopefully out of harm’s way for the time being. She supposed, as long as Salandria didn’t run off into a throng of adventurers this time, that she should be grateful the girl’s hair was the only thing out of place for now.

Especially with a certain high examiner still stalking the Spire’s halls.

~~~

Thankfully, there were no disasters during their trip to the Bazaar – Salandria didn’t go charging off without Liadrin (mostly because for once there were no adventurers about today to fill the elfling’s head with even _more_ wild stories) and no fights broke out that Liadrin, as head of her Order, would have been required to put an end to – and so the two were able to enjoy their time out in the city. Salandria managed to find three dresses and a necklace for herself, and had picked out a new pair of earrings for Liadrin. Liadrin herself had bought a few books and a new quill – the books were volumes the Spire’s library somehow lacked (likely because they were neither historical texts nor lengthy compilations of spells, magical creatures, local fauna, or other things one could learn just as easily by _talking to people knowledgeable in those areas_ ), and the quill was a preemptive replacement for the one she currently used. Liadrin had the rather unfortunate habit of chewing the ends of her quills, something she attributed to spending too much time around Lor’themar, and needed replacements on an almost weekly basis as a result.

It was nearly midday by the time Liadrin and Salandria returned to the Sunfury Spire, and, unfortunately, their return was almost immediately welcomed by a kitten’s startled yowl and an all-too-familiar man’s voice raised in a series of sputtering curses. Moments later Whiskers rounded a corner ahead of them at top speed; his fur was fluffed out so that he looked twice his size, and his eyes were round with fright as he raced to Salandria and leapt into her arms with a squeak.

Just as the girl caught the little fluff ball, the man he’d managed to irritate came storming around the same corner; there was murder in the expression on his angular, reputedly handsome face, and his eyes flashed with indignation. His blond hair was somewhat disheveled – an indicator he’d tripped over Whiskers, just like so many of the Spire’s residents often did – but beyond that his overly colorful outfit and gold monocle gave the impression that he was a very vain, stuffy man who likely took insult if a slave or servant so much as looked in his general direction.

Which, Liadrin reflected, was not a wholly inaccurate description of the high examiner’s general demeanor. The man made even Magister Bloodsworn – infamous for his apparent need to bed anything and everything with a pulse – seem decent and mild-mannered.

"Is something the matter, High Examiner?" Liadrin asked, stepping immediately between Salandria and Tae’thelan – the latter of whom stopped short upon seeing Liadrin. "You seem rather… flustered."

It was evident Tae’thelan was still rather vexed, because it took him several seconds longer than usual to stop staring blankly at Liadrin and reply, “No, of course not, my Lady Liadrin. I merely… stumbled – over that precious, _adorable_ little kitten there.”

Whiskers flattened his ears and swiped at the air in Tae’thelan’s direction.

"Charming little creature," Tae’thelan commented with all the sincerity of a professional mourner. He ran a long-fingered hand through his hair, and his features began to relax a bit as he said, "I see the two of you have been out on the town. I wondered where you’d disappeared to."

There was no mistaking the fact that this last comment was meant for Liadrin only. Tae’thelan hadn’t spared Salandria a glance, and the tone of his voice had made it clear he couldn’t have cared less if Salandria had stayed missing. Liadrin fought the urge to wrinkle her nose; if Bloodwatcher was anymore transparent, he could put a sheet of glass to shame.

"Well, we’re home now," Liadrin said crisply. "And we’re both feeling a bit tired, so if you will excuse us, we’ll be retiring to our rooms. Come on, Salandria – and bring Whiskers with you."

She moved away, skirting around Tae’thelan and leading Salandria on down the hallway. But rather than allow the two to leave in peace, the High Examiner turned around and followed them, keeping pace on Liadrin’s other side.

"That’s quite the bundle you have there," he commented. His voice was as conversational and polite as though he was discussing the weather, not impeding on anyone’s privacy. "Perhaps I could help you carry some of the load?"

"I am more than capable of carrying a few dresses by myself, thank you," Liadrin told him shortly. In her mind she sent a silent prayer to the Light to stay her hand against such an irritating, arrogant, ignorant elf while they were in the presence of a child.

"Then perhaps I’ll come along to open the door for you." Tae’thelan sounded and looked completely undaunted, and gave Liadrin what he likely thought was a very winning smile when she turned a withering stare on him. "Please, allow me to do _something_ for you. I would hate to seem the ungrateful guest.”

"Believe me, no one will think you ungrateful for walking away just now," Liadrin assured him. _Never mind the fact that Lor’themar has the final say as to who may stay here, not me._

“ _You_ may not, and your sweet little ward may not—” …here he offered a plastered-on smile to Salandria, who smiled back a little awkwardly, “—but think of what could happen if someone else discovered the high examiner allowed one carrying such a burden to do so on her own!”

 _I could put you through the nearest wall before you had time to squall over the wrinkles it would put in your fancy robes, you great preening bird._ Liadrin felt the tightness around her lips as she smiled and knew her expression was likely more of a snarl. Even still, Tae’thelan seemed to think her lack of argument meant that she was through arguing with him; his chest seemed to swell a little, and he began to walk even more confidently as they continued on their way.

"Besides," he continued smoothly, "I’ve missed your company. Groundbreaking archeological discoveries are my lifeblood, but even they soon grow dull in your absence—"

"We’re here," Liadrin announced, making no effort to hide her elation as she and Salandria halted outside the door to their quarters. The matron deftly shifted her bundles into one arm and opened the door with the other hand before Tae’thelan could reach for the handle, then herded Salandria and Whiskers inside and turned to give the high examiner a final, much more sincere smile.

"I believe I’m in need of a nap," she told him brightly. "Good afternoon, Tae’thelan." She shut the door before he could answer and then all but skipped through her quarters to put away the dresses, books, and quill as Salandria and Whiskers bounced off to play another round of adventurers. She would undoubtedly have to put up with more of Tae’thelan’s antics later, but at least for the moment Liadrin could rest easy. Even _he_ knew better than to barge into a woman’s private rooms uninvited.

Outside, Tae’thelan straightened his robes fastidiously and shrugged away his momentary failure. He had a solid two weeks before he would have to leave the Spire again – more than enough time to talk the prickly matron around to a bit of alone time together. And in the meantime, there were plenty of other young, pretty girls to play with…

"Rejected again, eh, Tae’thelan?"

…And in the absence of pretty girls, there was always the _charming_ company of the ranger general to look forward to. Tae’thelan’s lip twitched as he turned to see Halduron leaning against the wall behind him, looking as though he had just witnessed one of the most satisfyingly amusing scenes in the kingdom.

"Brightwing," the high examiner greeted him coolly. "I’m surprised you aren’t out communing with the dragonhawks. Are they not sharing their food today?"

"Oo, cutting," Halduron retorted with a raised eyebrow. "Next you’ll be asking me why I’m not off tumbling one of my dozens of special friends. Oh, wait – perhaps you shouldn’t bring that up. After all, you seem to be having quite a bit of trouble getting even _one_ woman to pay any attention to you.”

"A temporary setback," Tae’thelan said, waving the comment away. "I still have the remainder of this month to win Liadrin over. I’ve made groundbreaking archeological discoveries in less time than that."

"You do realize Liadrin is an _elf_ , and not a half-buried temple to some forgotten god?” Halduron’s eyebrow had by now been raised so high that it appeared to be trying to bury itself under his hairline. “Getting a woman to sleep with you – particularly one as singularly devout as Liadrin – is a great deal different than blowing up dwarves and shoveling dirt and stone away from some underground burial chamber.”

"As if a _ranger_ would know anything about the fine art of archeology,” Tae’thelan sniffed. “Don’t you have some muddy little hole to go wallow in?”

"That depends," Halduron said. "Don’t you have another handful of rocks to pass off as pieces of broken relics?"

"Oh, you’re very clever." Tae’thelan straightened his robes again, his movements pointedly brisk as he added, "If you’ll excuse me, I have better things to do than match wits with a savage who spends his time swinging through tree branches. Good afternoon, Ranger General."

"Oh no, by all means." Halduron gave the high examiner a flourished, mocking bow. "Don’t let this lowly ranger get in the way of your important business, Tae’thelan."

Tae’thelan sniffed and turned away rather than dignify the other’s behavior with a response. By contrast, Halduron stayed where he was, leaning again on the wall next to Liadrin’s door and watching Tae’thelan until the idiot rounded a corner near the end of the hallway. It wasn’t so much that the ranger general felt uncomfortable turning his back to the high examiner; Halduron simply knew better than to assume Tae’thelan would leave and _stay_ gone. The man could sometimes have trouble understanding the word ‘no’ when it was spoken by someone he was trying to woo, and Halduron really wasn’t in the mood to scrap bits of Tae’thelan off the walls and ceilings just at the moment.

His ear twitched, and rather than turn to head back outside Halduron stayed put as he listened to a set of purposeful, heavy footsteps approach the door from inside Liadrin’s rooms. A moment later the door slid open just enough for Halduron to see a single, blazing green eye peek out into the hallway.

"He’s gone," he informed Liadrin with a grin. "You can put down whatever you were planning to throw at him."

The eye disappeared, and there was the clatter of a small wooden thing hitting a larger wooden thing a moment later – apparently she’d been getting ready to beat the high examiner with a hairbrush. When the door finally swung wide, Liadrin stood glaring out into the hallway as though she still half expected Tae’thelan to come prancing out from behind one of the paintings or tapestries on the walls.

"I never thought I’d see the day you started jumping at shadows," Halduron remarked. "I know Tae’thelan is aggravating, but I’m sure the first time you pitched him off the top of the Spire he’d get the message."

"Don’t give me any ideas," Liadrin growled. She finally seemed to relax a bit, and ran a hand through her hair as she added, "That lunatic spends more time chasing women than he does actually working. I don’t intend to be his latest hunt."

"Oh, don’t insult the fine art of the hunt by comparing it to that idiot’s conquests," Halduron begged. "I already feel like I need to bathe just from talking to him."

"You’re a ranger," Liadrin told him curtly. "You _always_ need to bathe. The problem is finding a tub large enough to hold all the muck that would come off if you did.”

Halduron laughed at that and teasingly said, “Maybe you shouldn’t be so quick to look down your nose, My Lady. If you were more like a ranger, it might scare Tae’thelan off!”

Liadrin snorted, but whatever response she may have been readying was cut short as Whiskers bolted past their feet. Salandria raced after him, calling over her shoulder as she went, “We’re going to play outside!”

"Stay clear of the dragonhawks," Liadrin called after the pair. She shook her head, stopped, and hurried to add, "And don’t go near the hawkstriders!" Whether she was heard or not was unclear – beyond a fading giggle, Salandria didn’t respond as she disappeared outside.

"I’ll keep an eye on them," Halduron promised with a grin. "You enjoy some time to yourself while Tae’thelan is still off stroking his ego with some poor, stupid young thing." He dodged the smack Liadrin aimed at his shoulder and trotted away after Salandria and Whiskers, chuckling as he went.

Liadrin shook her head, closed the door again, and purposely made her way to her bedroom. A nap would _really_ do her good right now…


End file.
